![]() ![]() ![]() In the first section, “October 1948,” Ono, an ageing painter, lives in obscurity in the postwar period, reflecting on his past as an artist and a prominent member of society in pre-war Japan. Masuji Ono’s life and reflections on his past are explored in four sections of the novel. ![]() Set in post-World War II Japan, the novel engages with the themes of memory, regret, and redemption. In this sense, the title is both a reflection of the setting, the society and a reflection of the protagonist’s journey along with a commentary on the nature of art,and by extension, life itself.Īn Artist of the Floating World | Summary The title sheds some light on the main character, Ono, who was an artist himself, and how his art, as well as his position in the floating world, contributed to his personal conflicts and regrets. ![]() The title is also a metaphor for the fleeting, almost wafting nature of a leisurely languid life and the world before the war, and how it all came crashing down one fine day. Eat, drink and be merry, seize the day -call what you may. This term harks back to Japan’s prewar world of artistic and social excess, and it is closely tied to the traditional art form of ukiyo-e, which depicted the pleasures and excesses of the time. An Artist of the Floating World is a reference to the “floating world” of pre-war Japan. ![]()
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